Daily Review Online
The first female presidential aspirant for the 2027 general election has emerged as the National Rescue Movement (NRM) elected Dr. Esther Nkem Okereke as its presidential candidate.
Okereke secured the party’s ticket ahead of two other aspirants — Ademola Joseph Onigbokun and Oluwadare Joseph Faduri — during the NRM national convention held in Abuja.
Accepting her nomination, Okereke described her emergence as “a sacred assignment and a call to service,” assuring Nigerians that the country could rise again under purposeful leadership.
She painted a grim picture of the nation’s current condition, saying millions of citizens were trapped in poverty, insecurity, unemployment, and economic hardship despite Nigeria’s enormous natural and human resources.
According to her, many families still live without stable electricity, graduates roam the streets in search of jobs, farmers are unable to access their farmlands due to insecurity, while businesses continue to collapse under harsh economic realities.
“Our nation is bleeding,” she declared. “Nigeria today is battling systemic failure caused by poor leadership, corruption, selfishness, and lack of vision.”
Okereke criticised the political class for turning governance into a struggle for power instead of a platform for national transformation and service.
She, however, expressed confidence that Nigeria could overcome its challenges through visionary leadership, unity, and collective sacrifice.
The NRM candidate promised that her administration would focus on stable electricity, food security, job creation, innovation, security, and restoring dignity to citizens.
“We can build a nation where citizens no longer merely survive, but truly live with dignity, opportunity, and hope,” she said.
She urged Nigerians not to lose faith in the country, insisting that history would remember citizens who chose courage, unity, and hope at a critical moment in the nation’s history.
“The road ahead may not be easy, but history has never been changed by people who were afraid to dream,” she added.